Costs of owning and running a home

The annual expense of owning and running a house has increased by £179 over the past year, according to new research by Halifax. It now stands at £9,590, an increase of 1.9% on the previous year, but still less than the 2.7% rise in consumer prices over the same period.

In fact, the average annual costs of owning and running a home are now 2.0% (£184) higher than five years ago. This increase is significantly lower than the 18% increase in overall consumer prices since 2008, says the Halifax.

A large part of this is due to the fact that over the past five years mortgage payments have dropped by nearly a quarter. According to the Halifax, the average annual mortgage payment has fallen by £950 (21%) over the past five years; down from £4,521 in 2008 to £3,571 in 2013. This decline largely reflects the fall in mortgage rates since 2008.

In contrast, the cost of each of the other 10 housing expenditure categories tracked has risen since 2008. Electricity and gas bills have risen most (up by 57%, or £626 a year), followed by home and garden tools (25%) and water supply and miscellaneous dwelling services (22%).

As a result, mortgage payments have dropped significantly as a share of total housing costs since 2008 from 48% to 37% in 2013. In contrast, the share of electricity and gas bills has risen from 12% to 18%.

Nevertheless, mortgage payments remain the largest single component of housing expenses (37%). Electricity and gas charges account for the second highest share (18%), followed by council tax payments (14%). 

"The typical costs of owning and running a home have again increased slightly over the past year, although this rise was below the general increase in the cost of living,” said Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax. 

"Overall, the cost of owning a home has increased by 2% over the past five years, representing a significant decline in real terms,” he added. “Lower mortgage payments have largely offset increases in other items of housing-related expenditure, such as the substantial rises in electricity and gas bills."